Bob Gruen's iconic images of rock

John Lennon and Yoko Ono, photographed by Bob Gruen at the Fillmore East in New York City, August 1972.

The history of rock and roll couldn't be documented without Bob Gruen's photographs; he has taken some of music's most iconic images.

Gruen, who has photographed thousands of bands over nearly five decades, become friends with many of his subjects. He says he has never seen it as a job: "Yeah, I wasn't there on assignment. I was there 'cause I wanted to be there," he told Anthony Mason.

His new book, "Rock Seen," is not just a collection of his work - he says it's also "a family album of my life."

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From left: John Paul Jones, John Bonham, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin, in New York, July 24, 1973.

"It was kind of a snapshot," Gruen said. "But it turned out to be one of the most iconic pictures that, you know, really sums up the excess of the '70s. The plane's so big it doesn't even fit in the picture."

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

"Car Crash Debbie" - Bob Gruen's portrait of Debbie Harry of Blondie, taken at a wrecked car on 6th Avenue and 50th Street in New York City, September 1976.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

July 25, 1965: Bob Dylan performs at the Newport Folk Festival in Newport, R.I. - with an electric guitar. It was a day of infamy for some Dylan fans, but it was also an important day for photographer Bob Gruen, who has just acquired his first press pass.

"I had to kind of talk my way into it, 'cause when I first got there they said no," Gruen recalled for Anthony Mason. He said his mother had taught him that "No" is not an answer to accept, "but it can be the beginning of an interesting conversation."

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From left: Arthur Kane, David Johansen, Jerry Nolan, Johnny Thunders and Syl Sylvain of the New York Dolls, in Los Angeles, September 1973.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From left: Johnny Rotten, Sid Vicious, Steve Jones and Paul Cook of The Sex Pistols playing with straws at a cafe in Luxembourg, November 1977.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

John Lennon pictured on a rooftop in New York City, August 29, 1974.

Gruen became Lennon's photographer after he moved to New York. He told Mason he had given Lennon a New York City T-shirt, and photographed him on a rooftop. "We had no idea it was going to become such a well-known, iconic picture," he said.

Or one so often copied. "I think this image is in every souvenir shop in New York City," Mason said.

"Yeah, it gets around," mused Gruen, who wished he were getting percentages of the sales. "Actually, I feel complimented, you know, 'cause these people can steal anything from anybody. So I kind of take it as a compliment that they like my picture so much they continually steal it over and over again!"

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Bob Gruen photographing John Lennon on a New York City rooftop in 1974.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

John Lennon in front of the Statue of Liberty, October 30, 1974, in an oft-imitated pose.

"The government was trying to throw John out of the country," Gruen explained, "and I thought, being the Statue of Liberty would be a really good symbol of 'Welcome to America,' that we should be welcoming people like John Lennon."
"It is one of my favorite pictures," he said, " 'cause it has so much meaning. Because it is about peace and freedom. And I think those are the most important things we can talk about."

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Joan Jett of The Runaways, pictured on a bed at the Sunset Marquis hotel in Los Angeles, December 1976.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From left: Peter Criss, Ace Frehley, Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons of Kiss, at the "Dressed to Kill" album cover shoot at West 23rd Street and 8th Avenue in New York City, October 26, 1974.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and Tina Turner, backstage at the Ritz in New York City, January 1983.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From Left: Joe Strummer, Mick Jones and Paul Simonon of The Clash, at Top of The Rock in New York City, June 1981.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

From left: Tre Cool, Billie Joe Armstrong and Mike Dirnt of Green Day, photographed at Top of the Rock in New York City, May 16, 2009.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

"Brain of a Popstar" immortalizes a meeting of the minds of Surrealist Salvador Dali and the surreal Alice Cooper, in New York, February 25, 1973.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Elton John is photographed on stage at New York's Carnegie Hall in November 1972.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

The Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger at The Record Plant in New York City, May 7, 1972.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

This multiple-image exposure captures the energy of Tina Turner on stage at the Honka Monka Room in New York City, July 8, 1970.

"This is one picture while the strobe light was flashing - so this is what Tina does in one second," Gruen said.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Chuck Berry kisses his guitar, on stage at the Rock & Roll Revival concert at New York's Madison Square Garden, October 15, 1971.

Credit: copyright Bob Gruen / bobgruen.com

Photographer Bob Gruen, center, with Anthony Mason and Debbie Harry of Blondie, in New York City, 2012.